I Found My Thrill
by DeniseV
Summary: McKay and Sheppard's thrill is more surprising than you'd think. Not slash! A follow on story for the episode Phantoms.


"Lower the shield," Dr. Elizabeth Weir ordered. She strolled down to meet the arriving team. There had been no sign from Sheppard's voice that there was any problem, no dreaded 'coming in hot' warning. She always breathed a sigh of relief when she didn't have to hear that phrase. As she reached the event horizon, Atlantis' premiere off world team, with one replacement, stepped out of the wormhole, through the shimmering event horizon and into the gate room. They were snow-covered, and Elizabeth wasn't too sure there weren't icicles formed on Ronon Dex's locks. She was a wise woman, however, and chose not to point that out.

She also noted that neither Ronon nor Teyla Emmagen seemed particularly happy, and Dr. Radek Zelenka looked downright murderous as he glared at the team leader while he stormed past and headed in the direction of the infirmary. Elizabeth turned to watch Zelenka's back as it quickly faded from view, a refreshing cold mist catching her in the face as she did so. When she turned around back to the rest of the team, she found a broadly smiling Lieutenant Colonel John Sheppard standing waiting for her, the snow falling from all the nooks and crannies of his vest, pack and P-90 and melting into a puddle all around him on the floor.

"How did it go?" she asked. John's smile was infectious, to say the least. Ronon growled as he walked by, unapologetically bumping into Sheppard's shoulder. Even Teyla presented him with an 'if looks could kill' stare before leaving the gate room area.

"I'd say it went pretty darn good," the colonel answered light-heartedly, despite all of the contrary evidence silently presented by the rest of the team.

"Really?" Elizabeth countered, suspicious of Sheppard's assessment considering the behavior of everyone else.

"Sure," he continued. "We didn't get attacked by anyone or anything, nobody got kidnapped or hurt, and we found these," he smiled, holding out a large bag for Weir's inspection.

She began to open the sack as she asked, "And what are these?"

"Go ahead. Open it up. You'll see," he said, his face bright with the thrill of a successful mission.

Elizabeth opened the bag and looked inside, squinting to see the contents. She looked back up to him in questioning silence, but the Atlantis expedition's civilian leader followed the instructions of her military counterpart. She reached in the bag and felt chilled, small round objects. They felt like a small pellet, though they were softer, and there was a definite pleasant, sweet-tangy odor wafting up through the opening. They felt like a berry of some sort. She grabbed a few of the round objects and brought them out of the bag and into the light.

"Blueberries?" she asked.

"Not just any blueberries, Elizabeth." The disappointment in his tone, in her, was unmistakable. "Wild blueberries. There is a difference. These aren't like those cultivated ones you get in New Jersey. They're okay, in a pinch. These are WILD blueberries, like the kind you get in Maine." Or the kind from Nova Scotia that McKay talks so much about, he thought to himself. "The kind you find unexpectedly on a hike." He paused, his eyebrows way up on his forehead as he tried to make his point. "Try 'em."

"No, I think I'll wait for some testing."

"They're okay. I've had some."

"John! I think you know better…" she began to admonish.

"What? You don't trust Dr. Z.? You would have trusted McKay," he said accusingly.

"It's not that and you know it. Obviously if you were in need of sustenance and any of our scientists had given the all clear then I would approve, of course. This clearly wasn't such a circumstance. You were gone five hours."

Sheppard started walking and Weir joined him. "Maine wild blueberries," he said lovingly, longingly. "Do you know how long it's been?"

"I understand that," she replied, trying hard to keep a straight face. She could honestly say that she had never seen John Sheppard in such a state, especially not over food. "But I should think you would still exercise restraint," she went on, the warning there that she expected he would show better self-control from this point forward.

"I didn't figure anyone but Rodney would understand," John said, the note of superiority impossible to miss.

"Yes, well, good for Rodney," she replied testily. "The rest of your team seems far less enthusiastic about your mission. I have to admit that a harvest of blueberries was not the bounty I was hoping for."

John rolled his eyes. "There's not much there, Elizabeth. It's a pretty planet, but it's been a long time since anyone has lived there. There were signs of civilization, but Zelenka thinks it's been a hundred years or more since that society died out."

"So why does your team look like they want to kill you?"

"Ah, it's nothing. They'll get over it."

"Get over what?" Weir asked.

"Well, that's a long story. Can I go get a hot shower, change, get Beckett to give me a thumbs up, have him test these," he added condescendingly, taking back the bag of berries, "and check on McKay?"

"I want you and your team in the briefing room in one hour."

"Gee, that's generous of you, Elizabeth." She stared at him, seemingly almost as mad at him as his team was. "An hour, you bet," he added as he jogged away.

A short time later, Dr. Carson Beckett was finishing his post-mission examination of John Sheppard. The Air Force colonel was kicking his feet together like little boys do in anticipation of getting this mandatory assessment over with and getting the go ahead to go see his friend. He hated not having Rodney with the team, especially when it was his fault that McKay had been sidelined.

"Could you please sit still?" Carson begged for the third time. "I could get this done faster if you would."

"Sorry," Sheppard apologized, his smile from earlier still burning bright. "So, McKay's doing better? I guess so or you wouldn't have released him, right?"

"You're a right Sherlock Holmes, Colonel," Carson responded sarcastically. "Yes, the infection cleared nicely, he began to whine, as he is wont to do. I released him mostly, however, to alleviate the suffering of my staff."

John's smile faded a bit. Quite a bit. "He was shot, Doc. By me. And then the wound got infected. I know that he's an accomplished complainer, but I'm pretty sure he had a right this time."

"I'm not denying that, John. But my nurses feel the brunt of that 'justified' complaining, and then they have to deal with him on the back end, when all that he does is moan and groan to be let out, often well before he's ready. It's a lot for these people to deal with."

"I get that. Don't think I don't get my fair share."

"I'm sure you do. You're a good friend," Carson added with a grin.

"But if he's well enough to be back in his quarters, that's good, right?"

"Yes it is. But remember, his wound will be tender, he needs to finish that course of oral antibiotics, and he needs to rest. He'll not be back on duty for near a week. He needs to take it easy."

"I'm not going to wrestle him," John responded to the not-so-subtle warning.

"Fine. And you're fine, too." John jumped down from the exam table. "One thing: that was an unnecessary risk that you took with those alien berries."

"They tested fine, didn't they?" Sheppard asked with a knowing smirk.

"That is not the point," Beckett answered in frustration.

"Did ya try 'em?" John questioned anxiously.

"Also not the point. I need some assurances from you that you will not do that again."

"You got it. Whatever. Did you try 'em?" Sheppard insisted.

"I've got to tell you that as assurances go, this one of yours lacks, oh, how shall I say, conviction?"

"I won't do it again. I promise," John added, crossing his heart.

Carson Beckett rolled his eyes and smiled. "Fine. And good."

"So?" Sheppard waited for his answer.

"Yes. I tried them."

"And?"

Carson shook his head and looked down at his feet. He crossed his arms over his chest, raised his head to look at the colonel and said, "They're bloody magnificent."

John's face lit up, a huge grin and twinkling eyes projecting his satisfaction with the answer.

"They really are, aren't they?" He paused and then said, "I need to take some to McKay." He took the bag and poured about a half a cup of them into a small plastic container. "Can you take the rest to the mess and see what they can prepare with them? I have to meet with Elizabeth in twenty minutes, but I need to see Rodney first."

"Go ahead. I'll take them down to the commissary on my way up to the briefing room."

"Great!" Sheppard called as he ran out of the room. "Thanks, Doc."

A breathless John Sheppard made it to McKay's quarters in three and a half minutes. Best time ever! He initialized the 'doorbell' but there was no answer. John frowned and then tried knocking. Again, no answer. Rodney was probably napping. Heavily. The Air Force man let himself in to his friend's living quarters and found McKay, as expected, sleeping in his bed, the ever present small stream of drool at the corner of his mouth. John breathed in and out with satisfaction, never happier to experience a huge sigh of relief.

He sat on the edge of McKay's bed and said, "Wake up, McKay. I'm baaaack." Rodney groaned but opened his eyes, his hand going up out of reflex to wipe away the crusty wetness from his mouth. He yawned and then rubbed his eyes to help himself wake up.

"So you are. How was it?" Rodney asked through another yawn.

"Pretty uneventful," John dodged as he waited for McKay to awaken more. "I brought you something."

"Gee, thanks Dad," he said as he pushed John's hip in order to sit up. "I love it when you bring me a prize."

John stood and said, "You know, son, I could keep them for myself, except I'm inherently a very giving person. It would hurt me to have to do that."

Rodney gave him a glare as he rose from the bed and stood next to his friend. He paused before responding, as if trying to decide what to do next, and said, "I have to pee. Can it wait?"

"Your appreciation for my efforts is underwhelming."

McKay kept the door open as he went about his business. He returned volley with, "I've been sleeping for ten hours. I think Carson put something else in those pills. My priority right now is not to make you feel appreciated."

Little did Rodney know that this conversation was doing more than anything else ever could to prove how much McKay appreciated their friendship. After all, Sheppard had only just shot the man a few days before. The fact that he was under the influence of an alien device, no matter how many people looked upon it as a legitimate excuse, didn't make him feel any better. This, these moments with Rodney spent talking as though nothing had happened between them – this was all the medicine he needed to feel better about what he'd done.

But John wouldn't say anything about that to McKay. It was more fun to keep at what they did best.

"Then you're doing a damn fine job. Definitely NOT feeling appreciated here."

Rodney finished washing his hands, his face, brushed his teeth and tried to fix his hair. As he walked out of the bathroom he answered, "Oh, get over yourself. You shot me."

"Thanks for the reminder," John said gloomily.

"It was nothing." McKay grabbed his pants and shirt that were folded neatly over his chair and started to dress.

"What are you doing?"

Rodney looked at John and said, "You're sure you were invited to join MENSA? MENSA," he added with emphasis.

"Ha, ha. I know you're getting dressed, but why?"

"Because one can sleep for just so long before one needs to pee," he answered, pointing back to the bathroom, "and eat."

"Oh," John said sadly.

"What?" Rodney asked as he topped off his ensemble with his jacket.

"Well, I was sort of hoping we could have dinner together."

"Dinner? What the…what time is it?" he asked as he pulled Sheppard's wrist up to verify. "What!?!? I slept like twenty hours. I am going to kill Carson."

"I doubt it's Carson, Rodney. You were shot," he started, and then John put his finger up in warning. "Don't say it." He continued, "You've had a rougher than normal recovery, infection, and you know antibiotics knock you out."

McKay stood impatiently waiting for Sheppard's list to end. "Fine. So why can't we eat together?"

"Because I have to debrief with Elizabeth and the team in ten minutes."

"That's okay. I'll tag along. When she sees me, Elizabeth will make sure that the meeting doesn't go very long."

"You're a master manipulator, Rodney McKay." Sheppard had mixed feelings about having Rodney there for the debriefing, but he could think of worse things. Watching McKay walk gingerly out of his room was an easy reminder of that fact.

"So, what'd you bring me?"

"Wow, I almost forgot. Here." John handed Rodney the small container that he had transferred the berries to. McKay opened the box, recognized immediately what it was, and brought the container up to his nose. He breathed in appreciatively the scent of the wild berries.

"They're safe?"

"Uh-huh," Sheppard answered, nodding his head enthusiastically.

Rodney took one out and placed it in his mouth. John could tell the second that the flavor exploded across his palette, the ambrosia hitting his taste buds exquisitely: McKay practically swooned. He took a handful next, closed his eyes and sucked on the tiny grayish-blue gems. A slight moan escaped…Rodney was experiencing…

"Um, McKay? You may want to save that for behind closed doors."

"You're to blame, and I would blame you if it ever came down to testifying, but good point. They are incredible. What else did you get from these people?"

"Well, let's save that for the debriefing," he answered evasively.

McKay started to hand the container back.

"No, buddy. They're all yours." Rodney promptly snarfed them all by the time they reached their customary seats in the briefing room.

"Dr. McKay, you will be joining us?" Teyla asked warmly.

"Yes. For a while, anyway."

"How are you feeling?" she asked, Colonel Sheppard seemingly completely invisible to her. It would have been impossible for McKay, and now Elizabeth Weir, who had just entered the room, to miss the cold shoulder that the Athosian was giving her team leader.

"Better, thanks."

Carson Beckett and Radek Zelenka walked in. "Though it seems," Rodney continued, staring at Beckett as his physician took his seat, "that I slept a suspiciously long while, straight through the day, and last night, in fact."

"Rodney, you're recovering from being shot," Beckett started his defense. "My apologies, Colonel," he interjected Sheppard's way. "And an infection. And heaven knows the toll our bodies took while under the influence of that bloody thing. I only released you because you were driving us all batty."

"Really?" McKay asked haughtily, but he quickly changed direction, frowned a little and then asked again, worriedly, "Really? Th-then should I still be in the infirmary? Maybe I slept so long because I'm not recovering properly."

"You're fine, Rodney," John assured soothingly.

"Well, that's easy for you to say. You shot me. The fact that I'm not dead is a big plus for you."

"Rodney!" Carson chastised. John sat back and slouched in his chair.

"Oh. Um, I didn't mean anything by that. I mean, I'm sorry." He looked at John sadly. "You brought me blueberries…" he added.

"Wild blueberries," John noted quietly, his eyes averted to the tabletop.

"Just like Nova Scotia wild blueberries," Rodney added.

"Probably more like Maine."

"No, definitely more like from Oxford," Rodney insisted.

"Oxford?" Carson asked.

"Oxford, Nova Scotia. The Wild Blueberry Capital of Canada." The slogan rolled off of Mckay's tongue knowingly; he could easily get a job with the Oxford Chamber of commerce with that enthusiastic reading.

"They taste like the ones we used to pick while on vacation in Maine," John supplied in support of his argument.

"Well," Rodney started in appeasement, "Maine and Nova Scotia are practically the same."

"Practically neighbors, anyway."

"Bosom buddies, practically."

"Practically," John smiled.

"Isn't this sweet?" Ronon Dex said as he leaned on the door frame. "It's a love fest. Only I can't tell if it's between Nova Scotia and Maine blueberries…" Rodney's finger went up, but Ronon continued before the scientist could say anything, "WILD blueberries," Ronon growled, "or if it's between the two of you."

"That was uncalled for," Rodney protested.

"Not that there's anything wrong with…that," John added, grinning.

"Of course not," Rodney agreed.

"Could we please start now that Ronon has arrived," Elizabeth Weir asked with annoyance.

"I'm not late," the Satedan defended.

"No one said that you were," Elizabeth said irritably. "Hello, Rodney. You look better. It's good to have you here."

"Thank you, Elizabeth. I won't be able to stay for the whole thing, I don't think," McKay said.

"We shouldn't be long. So John, what do you have to tell me?"

Sheppard opened his mouth, but his team beat him to it.

"They have freak snow storms," Ronon Dex began.

"No one has been there for a very, very," Radek took his turn, turning to face Sheppard when he continued, "VERY long time." John tried to get a word in, but Radek continued, "And we knew this upon initial inspection. And we certainly knew this after we had been there for one hour." John thought Radek was finished, but he was not. "And if we had left when we did, we would not have learned about freak snow storm."

"So you see, it was good that we hung out for a bit," John said in his own defense.

"Why?" Radek asked curtly.

"W…well," John stuttered.

"They have many," Teyla stepped in, "'wild'", she said, her eyebrow raised as she looked at Sheppard accusingly, "blueberries."

The room full of senior expedition members went quiet, and though Ronon, Radek and Teyla had each in turn provided some piece of information, Elizabeth Weir still didn't feel like she had learned very much.

"Colonel?" she asked.

John didn't look up, but he could sense McKay staring at him. "All right. So, we got there and there were definitely the remains of a village," he said, looking up toward Zelenka but consciously avoiding Rodney, "but the civilization had died out long ago."

"You didn't find any traces of helpful technology?" Weir asked Zelenka.

"None," he responded crisply.

Elizabeth frowned at the response and then asked Sheppard, "No sign of any existing farms, no recent Wraith presence?"

"Nope. Well," he nodded his head with satisfaction. "There were the blueberries," he explained, finally glancing McKay's way. He found a big, satisfied smile on his friend's face. A big, knowing, 'Sheppard was a dead man' smile. Sheppard pictured Rodney saying that, followed by a happy, 'Hah!'

"The blueberries?" she asked.

"Colonel Sheppard found some on the far side of the village," Teyla offered. "The colonel had said just minutes before that the mission was, how did he phrase it, Ronon?" she asked her teammate contemptuously.

"A bust," Dex helpfully provided.

"Yes," Teyla returned, nodding her head in thanks for the assistance from her Satedan friend. "We would have left then, but Sheppard found the blueberries."

More uncomfortable quiet was followed by Rodney's first words. He asked, "And then?" He used his right hand to project the motion to speed up the story, though he clearly knew exactly where it was going.

"We spent the next four hours looking for the area, or areas," Teyla amended, looking at John scathingly, "where the blueberries would flourish."

"Actually, that's not strictly true. We spent a little over three hours doing that," John defended.

There was that 'if looks could kill' look again.

"And the other hour?" Elizabeth asked.

"Forty-five minutes," John corrected. Weir just squinted her eyes at him, easily eliciting a better response.

"Getting back to the gate…"

"In the blizzard," Ronon supplied in clarification.

"It was really just a bad storm," John corrected again, staring at Ronon as he ground out the explanation through gritted teeth.

The participants went quiet one more time.

"So, I guess this planet is truly a bust," Elizabeth said, using the words of Atlantis' premiere off world team's newest 'permanent' member. The temporary member, Dr. Radek Zelenka, looked like he would be offering no more words as he sat back in his chair, his arms crossed tight across his chest. He looked like he would catch fire pretty soon if they didn't break this up.

"No!" John and Rodney protested simultaneously.

"No? What possible reason do we have for going back there?" Weir asked.

John and Rodney looked at each other, silently wondering who would say it. They came to a decision, also silently, that they would both have to. John started, but Rodney took up the mantra with his friend, a strange harmony to their voices:

"Wild blueberries?"

The two men found five disbelieving faces looking back at them.

"I think that's it for today." Weir rose and said, "Dismissed." She had never said it more dismissively in all their time in Atlantis. Teyla, Ronon and Radek followed her out of the room.

Carson Beckett stood and said, "Sorry, gents. They were lovely berries," he added forlornly. He turned and left the room.

Sheppard and McKay rose together and headed for dinner.

"That could have been worse," John said first.

Rodney looked at him as though he'd gone mad, and then asked longingly, "Do you think that Elizabeth really won't let us go back?"

"Of course she will. When they come up with whatever kick-ass dessert they dream up for the rest of the berries…"

"You brought back more?"

"Hey, my team's not mad at me for no good reason," Sheppard answered as he walked slowly beside a mildly shuffling McKay to their appointed rounds with a tolerable dinner entree, soon to be followed by what was sure to be a sublime alien wild blueberry dessert.

Rodney laughed and said, "Elizabeth's a reasonable person. Wise, for a diplomat. We'll have her over to the dark side before you know it."

"We've got Carson," Sheppard added.

"Cakewalk."

They walked leisurely to the cafeteria, sure that their plan, whatever it was, would come together.

"So, you spent hours hunting down wild blueberries?"

"You did taste them, remember?" John asked, wary of Rodney's question.

"No, no. I do remember. It's just that I'm curious about why."

"Why?" Sheppard parroted.

"Yes. I think it might be for me."

"For you?" John stalled. "Why?"

"Because you shot me," Rodney said as though the reason was obvious.

"I thought that you'd already forgiven me for that."

"Forgiven, yes," Rodney explained. "You were forgiven as soon as I was sitting pretty with some morphine in my system. Forgotten, no, though this gesture goes a long way toward erasing that event from my memory."

"Does this mean that you won't keep reminding me that I shot you?" John asked. A man could hope.

"Now what fun would that be?" McKay asked as he grabbed a tray and took his place in line.

Sheppard grinned, accepting the way things were, and happier than he ever expected he would be with the status quo.

The End.

A couple of Wild Blueberry recipes to make Rodney McKay swoon:

**WILD BLUEBERRY PIE**

**Filling **  
3/4 cup (150g) sugar  
3 tablespoons corn starch  
1 teaspoon cinnamon  
6 cups (900g) Wild Blueberries  
1-1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

**Fat-Free Phyllo Crust**  
2 teaspoons sugar  
1 teaspoon all-purpose flour  
4-5 sheets phyllo

**Lattice Crust:** 1 sheet phyllo

**Filling**: In a 4-quart (4-liter) saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch and cinnamon and mix well. Add Wild Blueberries and sprinkle with lemon juice. Toss lightly to combine. Cook and gently stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Cook and stir 2 additional minutes. Remove from heat and transfer to prepared phyllo crust.

**Crust: **Lightly coat a 9-inch (22cm) pie pan with nonstick vegetable oil spray. In a small bowl, combine the sugar and flour and set aside. Stack phyllo sheets and cut them in half crosswise. Cover the sheets with a slightly damp cloth until ready to use. Take one sheet and layer it on the pie pan. Coat it lightly with the vegetable oil spray and sprinkle about 1/2 teaspoon of sugar mixture over it. Repeat with remaining sheets, layering clockwise at 1-inch intervals until entire pie pan rim is covered. Trim excess phyllo with kitchen shears.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. (175 degrees C.)

**Lattice Crust:** Cut phyllo sheet in half crosswise. Lightly coat each half sheet with nonstick vegetable-oil spray. Stack the 2 layers and fold lengthwise. Cut into 6 strips. Twist the strips and arrange them over the pie filling, 3 horizontal and 3 vertical strips.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until phyllo is golden. Cool and serve at room temperature.

Wild Blueberry Pie serves 8.

**WILD BLUEBERRY PANCAKES**

2 Tbsps melted butter  
2 eggs beaten until thick  
1 1/2 cups buttermilk  
1 1/2 cups flour  
2 1/2 tsps baking powder  
1/2 tsp salt  
2 Tbpsp sugar  
3/4 cup wild blueberries

Melt and cool butter. Add buttermilk to beaten egg and blend in butter. Fold in sifted dry ingredients and blueberries very gently just until they are moistened. Lumps will disappear during cooking. Allow the batter to stand for at least 5 minutes before baking on a buttered griddle. Serve with warmed maple syrup. Makes about 12 - 14 pancakes.


End file.
